Nail-holding hammer.



' J. A. RIDDLE.

NAIL HOLDING HAMMER. APPLICATION IILED AU G.'15, 1910.

I1,@52,965,- Patented Feb. 11, 1913.

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JAMES a. RIDDLE, or HOTCHKISS, ooLonAn'o.

NAIL-HOLDING: HAMMER.

To all whom it may concern: Be it known that I, JAMEs A. RIDDLE, "a citizen of the United States, residing at Hotchkiss, in the county of Delta, State of Colorado, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Nail-Holding Hammers; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, vsuch as will enable others skilled in the art to which itappertainsto make and use the same. v

This invention relates to hammers adapted to hold a nail upon its head so that it may be given its. first driving stroke into "the wood. v f

The object of the present invention is to I equip a claw hammer with acatch that will cooperate with the claws in more effectively holdin a nail for driving than usual, and

will re ease the nail after the initial driving stroke more readily than usual.

In the accompanying drawing forming part of this specification :-Figure l is a side elevation'of a claw hammer constructed in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2is across sectional view taken on the line 2-2, Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a cross sectional view taken on the line 3-3, Fig. 2. ,e

Referring .now to the drawing, the ,nu-

meral 10 designates in eneral a claw ham- I mer head comprising a andle receiving eye or socket 11, from one side of'which projects-a pole 12, and from the opposite side of whichproject claws 13, a handle 14 being fitted in the handle sock t, these parts all being of the usual and we l-known construction.

Arranged upon the socket 11 is a rib 15, this rib being approximately wedge shaped incross section and having its fiat face 16 underlying and arranged approximately in parallelism with the bases 17 of the claws, and having its inclined face 18 merging with the edge 0 the socket 11, and further having its end faces 19 flush with the sides of the socket.- The flat face of the rib is made- I Specification ot Letters Patent.

. Application filed August 15, 1910. Serial No. 577,164.

slightly concave so as to effectively hold a nail head.

In mounting the nail for driving the head of the nail is brought to bear against the end Patented Feb. 11, 1913. p

face of the handle socket with the edge of the nail head bearing against the slightly concave face of the rib, the shank of the nail Y is then pressed back between the claws,.of

the hammer and wedged in the fork thereof.

The hammer is then turned with the 'point' of the-nail in the direction of theiwood or material into which the nail is to be started,

when the initial or starting stroke is made? the. shank of the nail is automatically released from the grip of the claws. the .head of the nail will slip without resistance from the face of the handle socket and opposing face of the rib leavingithe nail started and in position for driving in the ordinary way. This isan advantage over devices" of this character hitherto constructed and which have dove-tailed slotsengaging the nail head, in that a greater number and variety of nails may be started and driven in a given period of time than in ordinary devices, by virtue of the increased quickness with. which the nail can be placed in position in the hammer for driving and i the automatic disengaging of the nail from the'hammer as the initial stroke is made.

What is claimed is The combination with a hammer head having claws and a" handle receiving socket portion, of a wedge-shaped rib on the socket portion at the entrance thereof and projecting forward and extending beneath the claws the inner' fa ce of the wedge-shaped rib being concaved to receive a nail head the shank of which nail is adapted to project between the claws of thehead.

In testimony whereof, I afiix my signature, in presence of two witnesses. JAMES A. RIDDLE.

- Witnesses:

' S. E. Benson, 0. F. DIoK'soN.

When 

